Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed to cut their production levels by slightly more than 1 million b/d effective Jan. 1, 2017, to 32.5 million b/d from the cartel’s October production of 33.6 million b/d.
OPEC delegates said the decision did not involve a change in production quotas but rather what OPEC is calling “an adjustment.”
In a statement, OPEC said, “The market rebalancing is under way,” adding that investment levels in oil and gas dropped worldwide in 2015-16 as a result of low oil prices.
The OPEC agreement was reached in Vienna with the expectation that key non-OPEC countries will adjust production downward by 600,000 b/d. Russia is expected to account for 300,000 b/d of that 600,000 b/d, OPEC officials said.
Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s biggest producer, agreed to reduce production by 486,000 b/d, officials said in a news conference.
